A harsh life
by CelestialBirb
Summary: After three thousand years of humans being killed and enslaved by home-world gems a group of freedom fighters called the crystal gems turned on their kind and fought on behalf of humanity. And in the midst of this conflict stands Peridot Olivine, a simple court Sorceress only concerned with deepening her knowledge of the Mystic arts. Until something happens that changes her life.
1. Chapter 1: The Sorceress and the Queen

Night time was the only time when she could relax after a day of hard work. It was supposed to be the only time when she could lock herself away locked away in the simple comfort of her quarters with all her spell books, magic stones, and antique instruments.

She could lay down on her soft finely laid bed and catch some well-deserved rest from a long day of attending balls, performing rituals and occasionally reducing herself to the role of a court jester and performing ridiculous magic spells all in the name of entertaining the princess Jasper. Frankly, performing just the latter alone should have earned her a week of rest but being a court Mage was a thankless job to begin with. So why was she being summoned to the Queens room at mid-night. She swore, nobility had absolutely no respect for her kind.

Holding back an exhausted yawn Peridot fixed her robe on properly and made sure her sorceress hat fit on perfectly, you never wanted to look un-presentable to the queen no matter what. Especially one as quick tempered as Yellow Diamond. Once she was satisfied with her appearance she grabbed her long wooden staff which was resting against a wall.

It was about the same height as her with various magical rune signs written across it. At the very end of each side of the weapon was a small opening where a green gem was fitted. Indeed an elegantly designed staff, one that lords across the four kingdoms would be willing to part with sizeable portions of their wealth just to hang it along their trophy wall and her most prized possession. Her magic staff, a beacon of her role and status to all she met. A weapon of mass destruction that was always within arm's reach of

And now she would be making use of it to please some obnoxious nobles. Such a cruel life this was. Knocking on the door to Yellow Diamonds chamber she waited for her Queens's permission before entering.

"My Diamond, you summoned me" Peridot said as she got down on one knee and kept her head bowed. She knew better than to look at the Queen without permission, it was a mistake that had cost too many new Peal servants their lives on the first day

Even though this was her 'resting' chamber Yellow diamond wasn't one that spent a lot of her time relaxing. She was almost always up going over expansion plans or writing letters to other Queens. And just as expected the tall Gem was sitting down on large throne reading a letter. Without even glancing away from her work she used her free hand to motion to Peridot to rise to which the young Mage immediately obliged too./p

"Yes, I shall be stepping out the castle tonight to attend to some matters with Blue diamond. Until my return I leave all my administrative duties to you, Sorceress" she said. What? No way, she must have heard that wrong.

"I beg your pardon my lady?" she asked with her head still bowed, she was thankful she had the hat on. The Queen wouldn't be able to see the shock on her face.

"You heard me the first time Sorceress. You shall be in charge of running the kingdom in my absence, however short it may be".

"W-With all due respect your majesty, I am but a simple mage, my profession is lifting curses and brewing potions. I don't know how to run a kingdom. Wouldn't the young princess be more qualified for such a task?" Peridot questioned while trying her best not to sound irritated.

Really, why her of all people. She knew she had a habit of internally grumbling and cursing her Queen for always expecting miracles from her for just being talented in the sorcery, perhaps she had been a little too unappreciative of what she had and Karma had caught up to.

Laying the letter aside Yellow diamond stood up to her full height. Standing just below nine feet tall with her gold skin that flashed just a little, in turn making Peridot flinch just a little. The Queen truly was an intimidating figure to behold.

"Oh, please Jasper is a capable warrior and she would have probably made an excellent general if she were born into the army… Which in hindsight she probably should have been, as a Queen she would only bring shame to me. You on the other hand Peridot know enough about politics to make a half-decent ruler. And that is why you have been chosen".

So in other words she wasn't chosen because Yellow diamond respected her but simply because there wasn't anyone else who could stand in her place. Well, she couldn't really say she was complaining.

She could hear the sound of clanking metal indicating that the Queen was approaching her.

"I see, but may I ask what this mission is and why it's so important that you would leave the Kingdom?". The instant the words left her mouth she felt like slapping herself. She had stepped out of line and the brief silence that followed was probably the most painful thing she had experienced in a while.

"Nothing that concerns one your meager status Sorceress" she responded in a tone that conveyed less annoyance than she expected.

"My humble apologies, your highness. It was not my place to ask you such a question" she replied quickly to cover up her little slip. She received no response from her Queen and for a moment was worried she had somehow offended her again.

"…It is fine. I shall leave you with yellow pearl, she'll help guide you with all your administrative duties while I'm away. You may return to your Quarters for Now. But I need you to return here at dawn to meet up with her. Understood?" she said before walking over to the window and staring into thick forest that surrounded the kingdom.

"Yes my Diamond".

"Then you are dismissed".

And with that Peridot stood back up and made sure to readjust her hat which was beginning slide off her head. Using her staff as a walking stick she closed door to Yellow Diamonds room behind and made her way back to her quarters on the other side of the palace. With all the long hallways and staircases she had to go through one would think she'd travelled a kilometre long walk when she reached its closing stretch.

Thankfully she didn't run into any servants along the way, she couldn't stand having to respond to their greetings in her exhaustion. She made her way to third floor of a dark spiral staircase and inhaled the familiar scent of marble and wood. Even all the stress she would soon be going through it was comforting to know that this was always waiting for her. The one place that no one in the whole castle was allowed inside other than herself.

Grabbing the knob of the old dungeon-styled wooden door took she stepped into the room and took off her long green robe and carefully detached her prosthetic legs from her torso before crawling into bed and closing her eyes shut. She just wanted to rest now. Whatever pains she would be going through tomorrow weren't happening now. She sighed, sleeping wasn't something she made a habit of doing but every now and then she'd try it just to calm herself down. It was barely minute before the young sorceress fell into a deep slumber.

* * *

 **And here's the first in what I hope to be a long running fanfic project, its going to start small and gradually build the worlds story as characters grow and relationships change. For this story I thought I'd go with pre-crystal gem antagonist version of Peridot, and of course since this is an AU its going to twist certain rules and laws for convenience however there will be some parallels to the actual universe.**

 ** _Authors note_ : Honestly I'm not a big fan of this websites editing system but since I had the spare account I thought why not give my story's a bit more exposure and maybe rekindle the passion I have for writing.**

 **Of course expect the next chapter to be posted soon. until then stay frosty.**


	2. Chapter 2: Connie

She had heard the roar of the thunder more than a few times now and willed herself to go back to sleep. But ten thunder strikes was more than the twelve year old could handle. Opening her eyes Connie sat up with a jolt. Heart beating in fear from the loud noises she took a deep breath to calm her nerves which at the moment felt like butter.

"Just take deep breaths Connie, it's just the thunder. Nothing to be afraid of" she whispered in a feeble attempt to make herself feel better. If her mistress Peridot could see this she would probably tell her.

"Woman up Connie. You're not going to be a child forever". No doubt while casually filling out some documents.

Another loud thunder strike sent her hiding beneath the covers shaking uncontrollably. She wasn't too sure how or when she went back to sleep with the constant thunder strikes but it seemed her body was just too exhausted after twenty minutes of tossing and turning and just gave up.

Thankfully the sun was shining through her window. On the down side, it was still raining quite heavily outside. Well at least she wouldn't have to force herself to go back to sleep after all this. Rubbing her eyes groggily she reached for her glasses on the bedside drawer and put them on. Stifling a yawn with her hand she got up from her bed and put on her pink bunny slippers, before heading into the bathroom to perform her morning ritual.

After her bath she got dressed and had a quick cup of tea before gathering all her scrolls and manuscripts. There was nothing the mistress valued more than punctuality, if she could do that she was guaranteed to not be lectured too harshly for any mistakes she made during her lessons. She checked her hour glass and saw that she was going to be late if she wasn't in class in the next thirty minutes, dang she must have over slept again.

Fortunately, she had her trusty wand, phoenix at her side. A quick teleportation spell would get her to class in no time. Reaching into the massive folds of her oversized mage robe Connie pulled out a long Ivory coloured wand. It was carefully carved from top to bottom with the maker's initials carved into it. Waving the wand in her hand she closed her eyes and concentrated on where she wanted to go. As soon as she had formed an accurate image in her head she chanted the ancient text that she read in one of her textbooks.

She could feel the magical energy channelling through her body, but for some reason it felt a bit…Off. Suddenly she inhaled the thick smell of burnt wood and blinked her eyes open. And much to her horror the pointed end of the once beautiful wand was charcoal black.

"Oh no. She's gonna kill me!" Connie said in a panic as she held it closer for examining. There was only one reason for this. Turning it over she stared into a small opening where a green gem stone was supposed to be fitted and felt the urge to pull her hair out.

Channelling magic into a wand without a gem stone to regulate the energy was a sure fire way to get it damaged. How could she be so stupid?!

"Alright just calm down Connie" she said after a deep breath. Her shoulders slumped and she placed the wand back into her pocket. There was no point in gripping about a dumb mistake she made when the real blunder would be being late to the Mistresses. She grabbed her backpack and stepped out of the room. She locked the door with a click before making her way down the long palace hallway.

Much to her dismay the hallway was chalk full of Pearl servants who were all dressed in formal maid uniforms. And as expected they were doing what they were always doing at all times of the day and night, curtesy of their lack of any need to rest or sleep, EVER.

They were basically made-to-order servants that would do things like thoroughly clean and wax the palace floors or hang knew chandeliers, oh and don't forget hang Queen Yellow Diamonds one thousandth portrait.

She could feel their piercing gaze as she passed and tried to keep her nerves in check. It was obvious they looked down on and hated her for her status. After all she was just a lowly human girl, the bottom of the food chain. And from what she'd learned Pearls were at bottom of the Gem Hierarchy right after Rubies and Mercuries which served as basic infantry on the battlefields. Humans were just slaves that spent most of their lives working in Kindergartens as forced labour. Yet this human girl lived a relatively pampered life, and within the palace no less. More than enough to warrant a lot scorn her way.

Making her way into one the large court yards she accidently made eye contact with a group of chatting pearls and gulped when they all glared at her. They really, really, really didn't like her. And she was certain that the only thing that was keeping her from being harassed was the simple fact that her owner was the Queens Sorceress. That and Pearls had a bit of a reputation for being rather quick to fright in any sort of confrontation. Verbal harassment from a distance was the best they could do, usually.

As she made her way to the north side of the palace she climbed up the long stair case and spotted some Diamond nobles walking down from the top, umbrellas raised by some well-dressed human servants to shield them from the light drizzling while leaving themselves completely exposed.

The mere sight was enough to churn her gut and raise bile to her throat. Nobles were the only Gem's that she hated more than she feared the heads of the four kingdoms. Being the only gems that didn't have a job assigned to them from creation they were free to do as they pleased to all the others, be it their own kind or humans, especially humans. The books she had read about their sadism towards her kind, the stories she'd overheard from gossiping Pearls. They all painted the diamonds as repugnant monsters, even when compared to Jaspers who were generally considered to be the most bloodthirsty gems.

They were Tyrants, they were despicable, they were standing right in front of her. The obnoxious chatting had ceased and they were now regarding her from halfway across the staircase. Immediately remembering what the mistress had taught her about treating nobility with respect and immediately got down on her knees and bowed her head down until it touched the soaked ground.

"Greetings Mademoiselles" she said respectfully. She could hear low murmuring from them and frowned.

"Augh, aren't those royal garments. How repulsive" a feminine voice said from within the group followed by another one.

"I don't know, young human girls tend to look cute in gem clothing"

She remained perfectly still and prayed they'd lose interest soon and move on, she was already three minutes late and the mistress hated waiting.

She heard the shuffling feet indicating that they were moving on and exhaled in relief. Next thing she knew she felt a pair of arms tug at her hair and yelped in surprise. Raising her head up reflexively she saw a tall fancily dressed blue diamond noble-woman with short blue hair and eyes smiling down at her, the look in her eyes was one of childish amusement.

"And her hair is so soft and well-conditioned, I should do this to all my human servants" she said happily while some of the others let out unamused groans.

"Don't touch that Aqua, you don't know where it's been"

"Oh come on, just feel her hair for a second. Trust me, you won't regret it" she said causing her friends to exchange glances before gathering around Connie. /p

This wasn't a new experience by any means. She'd been treated like a common house appliance lots of times back when she was just a slave girl. But that was more than three years ago. And now she was once again feeling the humiliation, the way the gems tugged at her long ebony hair hurt and she wanted to fight back. She wasn't that weak submissive girl anymore. But she also knew that fighting back would the same as playing with fire. So she swallowed her pride and remained perfectly still.

She felt an arm on her face gritted her teeth in anger as they robbed her of her glasses.

"Oh these are a nice pair of specs. And their medicated too. I wonder who her owner is?"

"Let me try it on."

"No way, you were too busy hogging her hair to notice. Finders keepers, as they say"

"Instead of bickering over what Aqua has, why don't you just check her backpack for something else" said third lady who was clearly annoyed.

What, they actually wanted to take her stuff? Wasn't it clear by her clothing that she was already owned by someone, stealing from her was the equivalent of stealing from her Mistress.

She wasn't about to let this happen to her, they could man handle her all they wanted but she wasn't about to let them take the glasses her dad made for her, the last memento from her family. She was about to swat their hands away and stand up when she heard an audible cough which made all diamonds momentarily stop their raid on her hair.

"Ahem!"

"Oh, its you" said one of them, and she didn't sound to pleased.

"Don't the rest of you have something more important to do than 'THIS'" said a calm monotone voice, but also with and air of authority. She really couldn't see much of anything with all the females crowding her.

"Oh, come on. Were just having fun"

"Fun? You do realize who's human that is don't you?"

"Like it matters. Were all members of blue diamond's court, we outrank everyone else here".

"But you don't out rank Yellow Diamond" the voice said causing some of them to gasp while some of the more stubborn ones huffed in disbelief.

"Oh please the only servant Yellow diamond has is a single Pearl, she has no human servants" the one named Aqua retorted.

"But her Sorceress does. I don't think Peridot would be too pleased to hear that you inconvenienced her by harassing her servant while performing her duties, now would she? Especially considering her new status as of this morning's announcement" the voice said with that same air of calm, but with a slight firmness in her tone.

"Wait, this is. T-T-That Witches Servant?" Aqua said as she flung the glasses off her face letting it crash on floor, cracking one its lens in the process. The rest of gems released her hair quickly stepped away from her.

"Come on girls, we have better thing to do than waste our time on this trash" one said as she rubbed her hands on the suit of one the human servants in an attempt to clean Connie off. No doubt in their eyes she was equal to a filthy animal.

She heard the retreating footsteps and let out a sigh of relief. Reaching for her glasses she froze when a blue hand reached down and grabbed it. Glancing up with an anxious look she saw petite court diamond dressed in a flowy blue dress. She must have been the one that stood up for her. But why?

"Are you alright little one?" she asked as she cleaned the lens with a handkerchief before handing it back to her. She stared at it momentarily before raising a shaky hand to grab it.

"Um yes. I-I mean yes Ma'am" she said nervously. This behaviour was so abnormal, why do this for her. After all she was just human.

"That's good to hear" she said as she helped dust off all the dirt on Connie's robes before helping offering a hand to help her back to her feet, Connie accepted it reluctantly.

"Why did you do this for me?" Connie asked when she was back on her feet. At her full height they stood shoulder to shoulder, she couldn't help but take a little bit of satisfaction from the fact that they stood on equal footing. Well kinda.

Smiling at her warmly the noble replied.

"No real reason, I suppose I just couldn't stand by and watch them abuse you like that" she said. Due to overgrown hair her eyes were completely hidden making Connie wonder just how she could see anything.

"I see, thank you". She wasn't sure of how to talk to the noble-woman. She had always viewed other Gems as indifferent to the pains of humans, and now a blue Diamond noble of all people was standing up for her.

"That and it would probably do them some good to not bother you, what with the Sorceress's new promotion.

Promotion? What promotion? Come to think of it that was precisely the reason why those nobles left her alone, well that and they hated sorceresses.

"A promotion? I didn't know my Mistress was promoted"

"Well I suppose you wouldn't be aware since most humans would be… What's the word?... Sleeping at that time of the night. But yes, it would appear Queen Yellow diamond left the palace yesterday along with a small platoon of Rubies and Jaspers. She appointed Sorceress Peridot as your kingdoms temporary ruler until her return" she explained. "And by the looks of things I imagine Princess Jasper's going to raise some trouble for her"

This was a lot to take in, her mistress was promoted last night and she didn't even have the slightest clue.

Normally a promotion was meant to be a good thing but if there was thing she knew about her Mentor it was that she was a creature of habit, content with where she stood in life and wasn't interested in changing it in the least. There was no doubt that she wouldn't be too thrilled about her new status, but she also wondered how this would affect her classes.

"Well, it was nice meeting you little- sorry but what's name?"

"Oh, um it's Connie my lady"

"I see. Well my name is Sapphire, It was nice talking to you but if I loiter here any longer Blue diamond may begin to notice my absence" she said as she lifted her long dress and made her way down the staircase.

"Yes my lady" she said awkwardly. Now that she was alone again she noticed that all the nearby gem's had paused their work to stare at the little exchange, some looked angry that she had emerged from the Diamond nobles relatively unharmed, but most of them just looked shocked that a noble woman from Blue Diamonds inner circle had stood up for her.

She herself was still trying to process the information. But then she remembered that she still had a class to get and shook the thought out of her head before hurrying up the stairs.

When she finally made it to the Alchemy lab she was panting uncontrollably from all the staircases she had to climb. But she was also relaxed. No servants ever visited this part of the castle, it was reserved for her mistress only. Not even the snobbish Pearls could decorate the room with useless ornaments or pictures of any diamonds.

There were however a few portraits about ancient Mages and historical figures. Both human and Gem alike that had changed history. The wall made from a mix of rock and Cement with a few gem tech enhancements to make it more durable. Occasionally there was a Knight standing by a wall. All of this combined with the scent incense gave the place a really gothic feel to it.

She said it was supposed to help ward off spiritual monsters that were attracted to the vast amount energy within the room as well as make her magic easier to control during training sessions.

Honestly Connie was just glad to be rid of the constant smell of cement.

After taking a brief moment to catch her breath she reached for the knob of a huge wooded door and pulled it open before making her way into a huge room with book shelves that reached as high as two stories, all lined with books neatly arranged from left to right of each row there were about five of them in total with a few tables which she used for studying.

Adjacent to the door was a large table that had some large cylindrical containers that contained some dark chemicals, there were also a few dissected centipedes and some herbs. And opposite to her was a large desk with a large pile of paperwork and spell books. Lastly there were a few windows around the room that kept it well illuminated.

"For once, she's the one that's late" Connie muttered as she adjusted her cracked glasses and closed the door behind her, she then proceeded to dump her bag on the closest table before walking over to the desk. The mistress normally left notes on her table for Connie to find in the rare event she couldn't find time for their classes. It was usually just simple things like researching certain monster species, or ancient civilizations.

"Here it is" she said as she grabbed a small paper for her.

 _'Unfortunately, I won't be able to make to our class today due to circumstances that you're probably aware of… This is so ridiculous. Me Ruling the kingdom in the Queens absence is an unfortunate turn of events, but regardless I expect you to continue your studies on earth history as you normally do…I'll try to find time to see you for dinner Connie. Oh and please refrain from falling asleep while working again, I didn't set up that bedroom for you all for nothing_.'

She smiled slightly before putting the paper down. Her Mistress had a really indirect way of showing that she cared for her well-being, always trying to keep things formal and professional. At first she just thought that the mistress just wanted her to remain as healthy as possible, lord knows how many human slaves had died on the first month of 'employment' due to the poor living conditions of the Kindergarten.

But she was way too kind for that to work. She knew for a fact that even the Gems that valued their slave's longevity wouldn't go to this extent to make her comfortable, after all it was her health that mattered not her happiness. Minus the constant glares and loathing she got from Pearls she probably had one the best deals a human could hope for under gem rule.

"Alright, where's that history text book?" she muttered before pulling a chair from one of the tables and pulling out her scrolls.  
 **_**

 **And here's the next chapter, hope it was too your liking an please review if you feel so inclined.**


	3. Chapter 3: A rough start

"Well, you've certainly got nerve. I'll grant you that Sorceress" said a very peeved looking Jasper as she glowered at Peridot who rubbed her sore temples in exasperation. While she didn't fear Jasper she certainly didn't want to be on the princess's bad side. She had spent the whole morning mentally preparing herself for the inevitable confrontation and with such a short fuse she certainly had to choose her words carefully.

"Oh, a pleasure to see you, your majesty. Is there something you need from me?" she asked with a practiced smile and bow. They were situated in the middle of the War room and she was waiting for Yellow Diamonds Pearl to show up when the huge seven foot Gem stormed in.

"Peridot, what's all this rubbish I'm hearing about you ruling the Kingdom in the Queens absence?" Jasper asked jumping straight to the point.

"It isn't rubbish Majesty. The Queen ordered me to rule the kingdom until she returns"

"What? Why the hell would she do that? Your just a servant" Jasper barked as she slammed her huge fist into the table, completely shattering it. She was just within arm's length of the huge gem now, not exactly a desirable distance if things got violent, and so she took a few steps back to give herself some leg room.

"It seems she did not feel that you were up to the task" she said with an air of professionalism, but since that would likely set her off the young sorceress spoke more. "At least not yet"

"What?!" Jasper barked as she glowered down at her. She needed to rephrase that differently.

"Well, what I mean to say is that these tasks are of little importance. I'm sure if the matter was truly urgent her majesty would have given you the responsibility" she said in a tone that she hoped sounded reassuring.

Just then a visibly nervous looking yellow Pearl walked in with a small notepad and inked feather. She looked like she was trying to keep calm but the slight nervousness in her eye couldn't be mistaken. No doubt terrified by the Seven foot tall Jasper.  
She gave a respectful bow and greeting, as was expected of all Gems

"What the hell do you want?" Jasper growled.

"W-Well, it's just that the Queen left you some assignments she wants you to take care of, 'Immediately'" she stated with extra emphasis on the last word, no doubt as eager to get her out of the room as the Sorceress was. Peridot wouldn't have been worried if it were any other Gem, after all disobedience was a sign only shown by defective Gems, and there was little tolerance for such things in the Yellow Kingdom.  
However Jaspers were most known for their Quick temper and generally stubborn attitude. They were natural leaders but insufferable subordinates. Especially when said Jasper had an Ego as big as her fist.

"I know that Dumbass, I don't need a Pearl telling me that" she said as she turned her head back to the straight faced but internally nervous Peridot. They had a brief staring contest before Jasper exhaled, seemingly in defeat. But then with lightning reflexes she grabbed the Sorceress by the throat and effortlessly lifted her off the ground.  
She barely even had enough time to let out a shocked gasp before the sound was muffled by her choking. She heard Pearl let out a frightened yelp and back away but she could barely register much else other than the fact the princess was choking her to death.  
Her magic staff had fallen to the ground with a loud 'clang' leaving her with no other option than to pry at the giant fingers in a feeble attempt to free herself.

"Why? Why does she always favour you? What's so special about some filthy Mage that she'd choose you over me?" Jasper asked. She could see right into her eyes, and that look was as clear to her as day. Anger, resentment, Jealousy and most of all, hurt.

"Princess, please stop! The Queen could punish you severely if you shatter her" Pearl said in a worried tone. Though there was little doubt it was more for how this would affect her than Peridot.

"Shut up! I'm sick of this defective Peridot constantly garnering favour from the Queen. I'm ending her right now!"

She could feel light cracks beginning to form on her face and knew her physical form was beginning to fail. If she took too much damage she would be forced back into her Gem, if that happened she'd be completely defenceless. She couldn't allow that.  
Concentrating all her power into her eyes the pupils gradually began to lose their emerald colour until both sockets were completely black. Staring intensely into Jaspers eyes it wasn't until a few seconds had passed that her eyes lost all its rage and turned into surprise before settling on a vacant expression.

"Re…Releas-se me" she rasped Jaspers hold on her neck to instantly loosen and Peridot was unceremoniously dropped on her knees. She let out a few coughs and rubbed her bruised neck. Reaching for her staff for defence she stood up and faced the presently telepathically influenced Japer spoke.

"Now Princess, I do believe there are some duties that you are still yet to fulfil" she said as she straightened out her robe and hat.

"Yeah yeah. I know that, insect" Jasper muttered in irritation before turning round and stomping out of the room. She was quite fortunate that Jasper didn't have a strong mental will, otherwise she'd have surely croaked.

"What did you just do to the Princess, Sorceress?" asked an astonished Pearl as she stared at Jaspers retreating figure. She wasn't worried about how the gem might have reacted considering that they were in the same boat. Ruling the Kingdom was as much her responsibility as it was Peridot's.

To add to it the Queen wasn't exactly known for her understanding and would punish them both regardless of who was at fault. Even if whether or not she actually cared for Jasper's well-being was in Question. With a shrug Peridot gave a simple reply.

"Hypnotic suggestion"

"What?"

"I used my magic to coerce her into calming down" she explained. An appalled look formed on her face at hearing that.

"What! You do realize that using magic against royalty is treason, don't you?" she said in a tone that conveyed both anger and a bit of fear. "How do you think it'll pan out if the Queen finds out about this?!"

"Well, at the moment there isn't exactly anyone else that can fill our shoes. So I'd say there's a fair chance she wouldn't kill us. But still it wouldn't be wise for this information to leak" she cautioned while running a hand over the gems on her staff in case there were any cracks.

Angered by her nonchalant attitude Pearl got right up in Peridot's composed face, surprising her a little.

"Listen up you little cripple. I've spent several millennia's building the Queens faith in me, and I'm not about to let some 'techie-playing-magician' to tarnish that" she said as she glared into her eyes intensely. For a second she felt the slight pang of anger at hearing her handicap being mentioned but she quickly brushed it aside in favour of keeping things neutral.

She would have found the sight rather comical if she wasn't the object of Yellow Pearls anger, after all Pearls weren't fighters so seeing one try to look intimidating was rather amusing. But then again she did have a little bit of authority over other Gems, specifically other Pearls and Rubies.  
Rolling her eyes she used her free hand to gently push her away and out of her personal space.

"Don't worry yourself. The effects will wear off within an hour and she won't even remember this little encounter" she said as she turned to the broken table. With a single snap of her fingers the table repaired itself and stood looking as good as new.

"But-"

"I said don't worry" she said a bit more sternly. Letting out a frustrated 'hmph!' Pearl walked over to the side of the table laid her notepad down.

"… Very well then. There are a lot of things we need to do so it would be prudent for us to begin immediately" she said becoming more serious.

"Alright then. What are the tasks?"

"Resource allocation squabbles among Peridots in the kindergarten sector Z, then some minor paperwork followed by an inspection of the latest Batch of human servants. Then a meeting with some White diamond court members who want to purchase a few harvesters. Then you'll need to go over and approve some of the expansion plans that the Queen couldn't legislate before her departure. By my estimations it'll take about a week or so to complete"

Her head was beginning to hurt from all that information and she raised a hand to rub her sore temple.

"Something tells me this isn't going to be half as easy as you make it sound… Which doesn't really sound easy to begin with" she muttered with humourless smile.

"You're a ruler now, better get used to it" Pearl replied as she pushed a stray lock out of her face and crossed her arms with the notepad pressed to her chest.

"Indeed. I AM a ruler now" she said with a light chuckle. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing really. Just took a moment to consider my status and realized just how ridiculous this whole scenario is". At that comment a small mildly amused smile formed on Pearls lips.

"Indeed, I had always thought a Peridot ruling a kingdom was as likely as humanity winning the War. And yet here you stand before me. It seems miracles do happen" she said as the amusement on her face grow ever so slightly. And for a moment Peridot considered taking back every bad thing she ever thought  
about the assistant. But only for a moment.

It seemed she had her work cut out for her and couldn't help but feel a little guilty that she probably wouldn't be able to meet up with Connie tonight. But there wasn't really much she could do about it. Twirling her long staff Peridot sighed.

"Well then, let's begin"


	4. Chapter 4: Hydromancer

**Nope this story hasn't been abandoned and I apologise for the long wait to all readers. had a serious case of writers block mixed with real life stuff. But now its back and to make up for lost time ill be uploading three chapters back to back.**

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Deep in woods, between the borders of the Yellow and Blue Diamond Kingdoms. A small Platoon of Gems could be seen marching along the beaten path that was covered with green leaves and twigs. A single Jasper stood at the lead, she was riding a huge completely black Rhino with Razor sharp horns and blood shot eyes.

At the back a dozen rubies could be seen marching bare foot, their expressions stone cold and menacing. And in the middle, ridding a huge Sabertooth-Tiger was Queen Yellow Diamond dressed in her usual Gold armour. Her Beast was about the same size as the Rhino but twice as formidable with all the Gold Armour placed around it, both to match its rider and to make it extremely difficult to injure. Its open Jaws showed a Perfect set of Razor sharp Fangs that could bite through rock.

The sun was shining above the tress now, the previous night's storm had completely subsided, allowing the bright rays to coat the forest in a light Green hue, complemented only by the faint smell of wet grass and dirt. The chirping of humming birds in the trees gave life to the forest.

Perched on the high branch of one of the Tress was a small brown Owl. Its eyes watched the Semi large Platoon momentarily before letting out a 'Who' and fluttering off across the forest. It flew for several minutes across the rain forest before diving back into the trees.

A small Narrow cave could be seen at the bottom. It was discreetly hidden under some broken trees and boulders with some of the long leaves draping over the edge and partially covering the top side of the caves entrance. The tiny Owl flew into the human sized entrance, taking full advantage of its flexible bone structure and enhanced sight to navigate through the dark cave without flying into anything.

It eventually found a wide interior that had an open roof that sunlight could radiate through. A small cloaked figure could be seen sitting on a boulder. She raised a blue hand up from within the cloak and owl made use of it as a perch.

"What is it?" the individual said in a soft feminine voice as she pulled down her hood revealing a blue haired gem with short hair and Aqua skin. Blinking its wide eyes back at her the owl let out another WHO. Immediately the girls face was replaced with one of fear.

"What!? They're that close. We need to inform Rose at once" she said as she stood up with the owl still perched on her arm and walked over to a small makeshift table formed with some pushed over boulders where a crystal ball was placed.

Hovering her palm above it the Crystal ball levitated into the air until it was at eye level with her. An image began to form inside it for a few moments before settling on the picture of Rose Quarts.

"Lapis? What's the matter?" she asked with a confused look.

"You need to hide, Yellow Diamond is on her way to your camp!" she warned causing the Quart's eyes to widen in surprise before looking over her shoulder. Next thing she heard was a loud explosion followed by some Yelling from Pearl.

"Rose! Blue Diamond Knights are attacking!" she said.

"Oh Dear" Rose said in tone that conveyed a lot less concern that it should have. Gritting her Teeth Lapis felt her arms go clammy.  
An ambush, how in the world did she her Owl sentries not intercept it.

"It a trap. Rose you and Pearl need to get out of there now" she said frantically. The older Gem simply smiled back at her calmly.

"Don't worry, we'll be fine. More importantly hold onto this" she said right before a pink bubble materialized next to her containing a large glowing stone. "This stones is the crystal gems only hope Lapis. Keep it safe for us. Okay?" she said.

She didn't like where this was going. There was no way the rebellion would last without Rose there to lead it. And under no circumstances would she let her only hope of a free world die without a fight.

"Quit speaking like it's over. I'll come over and teleport you all out of there" she said but Rose shook her head as an arrow wheezed past her. She had barely any reaction to it, as she usually did. In the background she could see other Crystal gems fighting, a few Jaspers and one fusion fighting off some huge blue Bears.

"You know your powers can only teleport a few of us at a time and there are over a hundred of us. I'm not about to leave anyone behind"

"But you-"

"Just do as your told Lapis" she said sternly causing Lapis to fall silent. Offering a single reassuring smile Rose turned her back to her before the image faded. Clenching her fist she lowered her hand as a sign for the Owl to leave which the animal did obediently.

Reaching for the floating Bubble she popped it and used her free to keep it levitated above the ground. She then pressed it to her chest and allowed her liquid skin to absorb the stone until it was safely place within her chest. If they had discovered the campsite then chances were her cave could be compromised as well. Chanting a spell her body quickly dissolved into liquid before leaving a small puddle on the floor.


	5. Chapter 5

Back in the Yellow diamond kingdom the day went on and twilight eventually emerged robbing the library windows of the light necessary for Connie to read her books effectively, her bones felt stiff from not moving for hours and she was being plagued by an annoying hunger. But she was nothing if not persistent.

She would have used her wand to illuminate the room but it was a little too broken now to be of much use to her now. So instead she did the old-fashioned thing and lit the fireplace so she could get back to work. She knew it was getting late and she should have probably retired back to her room by now. But since she was almost done with most of her research she decided to continue studying for just a little longer.

As it turned out human history was a lot more expansive than she had first thought. Since no one in the kindergarten had ever kept track of how long they had been under Gem rule she had just assumed that they're entire history was about serving gems, oh how wrong she was.  
It turned out that mankind was chalk full of different histories, cultures, religions and so much more. Some so old they were almost entirely forgotten. Others so well known that they stood test of time millennia's after they're bearers died out. Her imagination was the only thing that could tell what life would have been like if home world never invaded.

It seemed the more she read the less she knew. Hell she could probably dedicate every moment of her life to learning as much about her history as possible and still just be scratching the surface.  
However she wouldn't be much of a Sorceress if she was just reading about her own races history, nope she was reading up on the planet's life cycle itself. The various minerals the planet had which coincidentally shared names and characteristics with certain Gem types.

Evidently Earth wasn't the only place where Gems could be made. The real question that puzzled her was why these Gems hadn't gained a physical form or consciousness like their other-worldly counterparts. Oh well, another question for the mistress in their next class.

With a yawn Connie closed the huge text book and pulled out her portable hourglass. It was already past eight.

"Well I guess I bit off more than I could chew again" she muttered as she stretched her stiff limbs and packed up her stuff. She felt the hunger begin to set and she placed an arm over her stomach.

"Come to think of it, I haven't actually eaten anything all day. Guess I should whip up something"

One would assume that she would have been starving from not eating anything in over twenty four hours but thanks to the magical energy overflowing within her blood her body could go on for a day, sometimes two days without even needing to eat or drink water. But becoming too dependent on the power wasn't advisable since the magic was coming from her own life force.  
Of course as a Gem the Sorceress Peridot had no reason to use her magic for such purposes since her body was naturally self-sustaining. But Connie, despite all her training was still very much a growing human. Or as her mistress liked to phrase it 'still a fragile human girl'. It was especially tiring when she kept on using that term to describe her.

Zipping up her backpack she stepped out of the room and made her way down the hallway and towards the little Pantry built in for her. Eating wasn't exactly something she particularly enjoyed thanks to the poor cooking proficiency of Pearls, but since the food usually did its job and kept her fed it didn't much matter whether or not it tasted good.  
Grabbing a piece of bread from one drawers she pulled out a plate and flask of water from the drawer. She then pulled out some cooked pieces of chicken from one of the pots and set all down on the plate. It wasn't exactly a five star dinner by any kings standards but to someone who used to live in the kindergarten it was a luxury.

Out of habit she took large bites before chewing on and swallowing the edibles, a habit from her time in the kindergarten since eating hours were dreadfully then it was in a humans best interest to consume as much as possible. Within a few minutes she was already done with the whole pot and moved on to munching on the bread. She guzzled the entire flask and wiped her mouth. Pleased that her stomach had stopped grumbling she washed and cleaned the plate before putting everything back in place.  
Making her way out of the pantry she headed for the exit that would take her back to the main castle. But just as she passed the library she heard the sound of murmuring from the other side which caused her to freeze in her tracks

'I didn't hear the mistress enter the room. Perhaps she teleported' Connie thought as she turned around and walked over to the door and pushed it open. But the mistress was nowhere in sight, just an empty office.

"Hmm, I could have sworn I heard someone" she muttered to herself as she closed the door. Perhaps she was just exhausted from all the studying she had done the day before. Yeah, that was probably it

Adjusting the slings on her backpack she made her way back to her quarters.


	6. Chapter 6: Surprise attack

"Ayah!" Pearl yelled as she used her blade to deflect a few daggers that were thrown at her. She then ducked under the spear of a well armoured opponent and shoved her blade right through the enemies exposed skull. A brief look of shock passed through the enemy's face before her body was poofed back into her Gem. Pearl didn't hesitate for a second to slice it in half, effectively removing the Gem from battle.

Even though she was swarmed from all sides by Rubies she skilfully avoided all their attacks while landing some well-timed counter blows of her own. She knew that the most efficient way to put them down was to aim for their Gems, though Rose didn't approve of that tactic. She'd normally have listened to her words, really under any other circumstances she'd follow those instructions to the letter. But when the object of her affection was at risk of being potentially injured or worst. Well Pearl would willingly disregard any order to protect her. Even against Rose's own wishes.

Speaking of whom, she could see her fearless leader Rose Quarts standing on the other end of the battlefield sword and shield drawn, ready to fight with the same care free unworried demeanour she always had. She was fighting against three Jaspers at once and didn't even seem to be breaking a sweat. Her blade traded blows with their huge horns drawing sparks from the heat of their weapons. Her shield easily blocked all their attacks and judging by the self-assured smirk on her lips she clearly wasn't worried.  
In that moment she felt the temptation to just stop and just gawk at Rose as she fended the Jaspers off, but it would make for an embarrassing death if she left herself open for such a reason. Instead she kept her guard up and scanned her surrounding for any attackers.

It was hard to tell if the other crystal gems were winning the battle or not but from the looks of things they were just barely holding the enemy back. It was then that Pearl spotted a pair of blue Tigers break away from their respective opponents and make a bee line straight for Rose. There was no way she'd be able to see them coming with those Japers in her way. So Pearl ran over to approaching duo while avoiding rocket fire and thrown projectiles. She wouldn't just stand by and allow it, no. All that mattered was Rose and no one else to her.  
Leaping into the air she raised her long rapier above her head and performed an aerial flip to build her momentum before bringing her sword down on one the beasts' neck. The Tiger growled both in surprise and agony as it fell over on its side. The other one roared at her defiantly and charged. Twirling her blade between her dexterous fingers she side flipped out of the way of its attack.

Using both hands she made a horizontal slash at the beasts back and was pleased when she saw blood leak from her blade. The Tiger let out a pained growl before turning around and glaring at her intensely. The first stood at its side having recovered from its shock and had its fangs bared and ready. Their crimson red eyes showed nothing but blood lust.  
Smirking confidently she held her blade in a backhand grip. Predatory instinct kicking in the two beasts began circling her from each side in an obvious attempt to make it harder for her to defend her blind spot. She cleared her mind and remained planted in her position with her grip on the blade tightening ever so slightly.

With blinding speed one of the tigers growled and lunged at her. Fortunately, all her reflex training had paid off and she performed a split in the span of a second. It felt as though time slowed down as the Tiger leaped right over her body and leaving its belly completely exposed for her blade to pierce right through it.  
Tumbling to the ground the tiger writhed in agony as a crimson liquid leaked from its belly which was still being impaled by her sword. There was no time for a victory cry since she knew the second Tiger was now in her blind spot and was no doubt about pounce, she also knew that for all her training there was no way she could stand up from such a position and defend herself before it could reach her.

No. Only instincts could save her from being mauled. Reaching into her Gem she pulled out a short Dirk blade, she then forced her lids closed and concentrated on her sense of hearing to guide her arms. It only took the faint sound of a twig snapping to guide her dirk straight into the beast head. She was rewarded by the sound of a pained growl from the beast it as it pulled back. Pearl easily twisted her body back to her feet with a level of skill one could only associate with an expert Contortionist.  
Glaring daggers at the Tiger she was about land a killing blow when the beast scurried off into the bushes. Clearly it knew it had been beaten. She allowed herself a moment of pride for having fended off the Beast with injuries considering it was her first time fighting Tigers. But it wasn't long before she remembered why she charged in the first place what she was doing and turned around to see Rose standing right in front of her.

"Rose, are you alright?" she asked almost instinctively as her leader/mistress smiled down at her.

"I'm fine. You've been getting faster, I'm impressed Pearl. But are you hurt anywhere?" she asked in that angelic voice of hers. Blushing lightly in embarrassment Pearl looked away with her Dirk lowered.

"My wellbeing is of less concern than yours…But I do appreciate it my lady" Pearl replied as she rubbed her shoulder.

"Not True Pearl. Your well-being is of the greatest importance to me. All of you" she said as she patted Pearls Ginger hair. She couldn't deny she felt her heart sink when Rose made the statement much more general. She briefly contemplated what her reply would be but Rose spoke again.

"The others aren't fairing too well" she said in a much more serious like demeanour. "We need to retreat into the forest before Yellow diamonds forces arrive" she said.

"And the Novanoil?" Pearl asked.

"Don't worry I handed it to Lapis for safe keeping"

"The Hydromancer? Can we even trust her?" Pearl questioned sceptically. After all, the rebellions whole future was riding on it and magic sensitives weren't exactly known for their trust worthiness. She had no reason to believe this so-called defector would actually be of any help. Well other than Roses faith.

"I trust her" she said simply as she pulled a shocked Pearl into her chest and lifted shield up to deflect a stray projectile. Gasping in surprise Pearl pulled away and drew a spare sword from her Gem.  
Suddenly the sound of trumpets invaded their ears and all eyes were drawn to the image of a small platoon of soldiers charging at full speed towards them. There was no mistaking that flash of Gold anywhere. Queen Yellow diamond.

"It seems her Majesty is anxious to meet us" Rose said with an amused smile. Eyes widening in surprise Pear turned back to her leader.

"Shouldn't we retreat? We're not going to last with these reinforcements" she said to which Rose nodded in agreement before raising her sword into the air. There was a brief flash of pink light coming from its edges before the whole blade started to glow. The light continued to grow in intensity until it let a burst energy that completely enveloped the battle field.  
Yet for some reason she didn't sense any discomfort from looking straight into its bright rays, her eyes didn't water and the heat didn't rise. However, she could hear countless pained groans from all around her. Yet when she turned around she could see all the Crystal gems standing by downed opponents completely unbothered by the light, but just as shocked by their opponent's sudden defeat.

"Retreat into the forest! Now!" she heard Rose yell with enough Volume for all to hear. The others didn't waste a second and began running over to the forest behind her and Rose. "You too Pearl" she instructed.

"What. Rose no! But what about you?"

"Don't worry. I just need to hold out until everyone's escaped. I'll be alright" she said. But Pearl wasn't convinced.

"Then I'll stay behind and help out"

"No. I need you to lead everyone else back to the caves. I'll meet you there"

"But I-" she began protest when she was cut off.

"Pearl. The others need you more than I do right now. If they don't have a leader their morale is sure to drop. We can't afford that" Rose said as she ruffled her ginger hair reassuringly. "Don't' worry I'll be right behind you"  
Tightening her fist around her blade Pearl gave an obedient nod before taking a few hesitant steps away from Rose. She took one last glance at her before running off into the bushes.


End file.
